Elements of Distance Education Diffusion

Elements of Distance Education Diffusion
Module II

Distance education has gained acceptance in both the corporate and educational sectors. In his video, George Siemens discusses this growth and three possible elements of distance education that are creating more effective learning giving distance education its own identity, distinct from the customary face-to-face(F2F) learning environment.

While Siemens discusses global diversity, communication, and collaborative interaction as the three elements, I feel that collaborative interaction has evolved greatly as a result of distance learning. This increase in interaction is most likely caused by our increased comfort level in using computers and communicating online. As people become more confident with online communication, the process is able to evolve and include collaboration. As Siemens points out, people are more apt to be open because of the anonymity of online collaboration as compared to F2F learning.

In the past, if people wanted to collaborate schedules had to be coordinated, arrangements made etc. With the diffusion of online collaboration, groups of people, in the corporate and academic settings, can meet, share ideas, agree/disagree, revise, and formulate an entire project all with a few clicks of the keyboard. Several tools and devices are available for collaboration/communication including Skype, Googledocs, Elluminate, and Dimdim. Students can also collaborate via online forums, class discussions, blogs, and wikis to name a few. Being able to connect, communicate and collaborate with cohorts from diverse backgrounds people are able to share and the world becomes a smaller, hopefully more understanding place.

Jane

Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2008). The future of distance education [Motion picture]. (Available from Laureate Education, Inc., Baltimore)

The Next Generation of Distance Education

After reading the three articles by Moller, Huett, Foshay, and Coleman and listening to Dr. Simonson, there is a distinct comparison on many viewpoints in relation to distance or e learning. Simonson compared distance learning and traditional face-to-face learning (F2F) and rationalized that the two cannot be considered the same, but equivalent. His equivalent theory is based upon the idea that education, when practiced at a distance, should not be identical to F2F, but equivalent (Laureate Education, 2008). Having experienced distance learning first hand, I believe this theory is spot on.

All articles stressed the importance of access, and greater flexibility involved in distance learning as compared to the traditional brick and mortar environment. In addition, Moller, Huett, Foshay and Coleman theorized about reputable leaning situations and how distance learning is not always perceived as worthy when compared to F2F experiences. I can personally attest to the credible education I received via distance learning, but it required a tremendous amount of hard work and diligence on my part. I believe you only get out of education as much as you put into it, regardless of the delivery method.

Distance learning will continue to grow in popularity as people forgo the traditional environment for one that is flexible, portable, cost effective, and reputable.

Moller, L., Foshay, W., & Huett, J. (2008, May/June). The evolution of distance education: Implications for instructional design on the potential of the web (Part 1: Training and development). TechTrends, 52(3), 70-75. Use the Academic Search Premier database, and search using the article's Accession Number: 33281719.

Moller, L., Foshay, W., & Huett, J. (2008, May/June). The evolution of distance education: Implications for instructional design on the potential of the web (Part 2: Higher education). TechTrends, 52(4), 66-70. Use the Academic Search Premier database, and search using the article's Accession Number: 33991516.

Huett, J., Moller, L., Foshay, W., & Coleman, C. (2008, September/October). The evolution of distance education: Implications for instructional design on the potential of the web (Part 3: K12). TechTrends, 52(5). 63-67.

Simonson, Michael Equivalency theory. Video posted to
http://sylvan.live.ecollege.com/ec/crs/default.learn?CourseID=3649019&Survey=1&47=3951732&ClientNodeID=984645&coursenav=1&bhcp=1 viewed September 13, 2009.

EDUC 7102

I will be using this blog as part of my course work in the EdS program and to collaborate and share ideas with my cohorts.